masteriman



E. A. MAS-HERMAN.

moomwe DEVICE FOR LIGHTER THAN AIR AIRCRAFT.

APPLICATION FILED'APR. 24, 1919- 1,373,343. 7 Patented Mar. 29, 1921.

4 SHEETSSHEET l- NORRIS PETERS. |NC., LITHU. WASHINGTON. D. C.

E. A. MASTERMAN.

MOORING DEVHZIE FOR LIGHTER THAN AlR AIRCRAFT.

APPLiCATlON FILED APR.24. 1919.

1,373,343. Patenmd Mar. 29, 1921.

4 SHEETS-SHEET Z.

Wzlfedd'd I @ZajW E. A. MASTERMAN.

MOORING'DEVICE FOR LIGHTER THAN AIRAIRCRAFT. APPLICATION FILED APR.24, 1919.

1,373,343. Patented Mar. 29, 1921,

4 SHEET$$HEET 3- l l E. A. MASTERMAN.

MOORING DEVICE FOR LIGHTER THAN AIR AIRCRAFT.

APPUCATION FILED APR.24,1919.

1,373,343. Patented Mar. 29,1921.

4 SHEETSSHEET 4.

PATENT GFFICE.

EDW ABD ALEXANDER MASTERMAN OF STIRLING, SCOTLAND.

MOORING DEVICE FOR LIG-I-ITER-TI-ZAN-AIR AIRCRAFT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed April 24, 1919. Serial No. 292,465.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, EDWARD ALEXANDER NIASTERMAN, a subject of the King of Great Britain, residing in Stirling, Scotland, have invented certain new and useful Improvements Relating to Mooring Devices for LightenThan-Air Aircraft, of which the following is a specification.

The invention relates to mooring devices for lighter-than-air aircraft. designed to en able such aircraft to be moored in the open without wind screens or other protection against the effect of wind.

The object of this invention is.to moor such craft in such a manner as to prevent both forward and sidewise movement of the ship when moored, and with this object in view the improved mooring device comprises a two-point attachment of mooring ropes both to the mooring mast and to the airship, the points of attachment on the mast being separated from each other laterally as well as the points of attachment of the mooring ropes on the nose of the envelop. This system of attachment prevents the forward surging of the ship which is liable to occur upon cessation of wind gusts and consequent recover both of the mast and the airships envelop, from the strain caused by such gusts. 'It also prevents the ship sailing 7 into the mast, which it is liable to do when moored to a single point on the mast and its head gets slightly off the wind. F urthermore, any tendency of the ship to roll is checked.

, The invention comprises, broadly, a mast which is of sufiicient height to permit the airship being moored thereto, either just resting on or clear of the ground, and which is bifurcated at its upper end for the attachment of mooring ropes thereto at widely separated points, these ropes being also at tached ,to the envelop at two points separated laterally from each other which do not come into contact with any part of the mooring mast. Means carried by the mast are provided for taking up'the slack of the ropes in the operation of mooring the ship.

The invention will be described in sufficient detail to enable it tobe clearly understood with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein Figure 1 is a view on a small scale of the nose of an airship moored to a bifurcated mast in accordance with this invention; Fig. 2 is an elevation on a larger soale of one construction of mooring mast,

of the upper part of a modified construction of mooring mast; and Fig. 7 is an elevation partly in section of the base of an alternative construction of mooring mast which can be tilted so as to vary its effective height. Like reference characters designate correspond- 'ing parts in the several figures.

Referring first mainly to Figs. 1 to 5, a vertical mast A terminates at its upper end in a bifurcation or crutch B whicli may be of any approved design, 0. g. the crescentshaped lattice beam of triangular section shown in Figs. 2 and 3, and which carries at its upper ends or horns the winches C, C

The triangular section girder shown in Fig. 3 is formed of angle bars b, 6 ,6 at the three corners bracedby tie bars Z)". Mooring ropes D pass around the barrels c of these winches which, as shown, are rotatableby hand power through worm gear 0', and are adapted to be fastened, as by means of spring hooks at their free ends, to eyebolts or the like provided at the steel rings H, H to which a number of flexible connections 1 are brought from rings J, J of fabric of the type known as Parseval rings attached to the envelop at either side of the nose of the ship. These points of attachment near the nose of the envelop are symmetrically disposed on either side of the vertical longitudinal central plane and the line joining these points preferably intersects the direction of the resultant pressure on the structure due to a head wind. In a rigid or semi-rigid airship the mooring attachments can be applied in any suitable manner to the framing.

A' similar fabric ring J is attached to the envelop at the underside of the nose in the central vertical plane, and a wire rope K adapted to be fastened to a steel ring H connected with the fabric ring J 3 passes over pulleys L in the crutch B to a winch G at the base of the mast A.

lVire guy ropes F are attached in the Patented Mar. 29, 1921. I 

